In the recent Latin America hotel construction pipeline trend report, analysts state that the total construction pipeline stands at 717 projects/123,804 rooms, down 8% year-over-year (YOY) as it enters the third year of decline from its 2015-2016 peak.

Projects presently under construction stand at 329 projects/57,735 rooms. Projects scheduled to start construction in the next 12 months stand at 207 projects/34,712 rooms and those in the early planning stage are at 181 projects/31,357 rooms.

The first quarter of 2019 had 29 new hotels/5,405 rooms open. The LE forecast for the remainder of the year shows another 126 new projects/19,687 rooms opening. In 2020, LE’s forecast for new openings is expected to increase to 176 projects/28,698 rooms.

Mexico leads Latin America’s construction pipeline with a record-setting 205 projects/34,426 rooms. Next is Brazil, who’s pipeline peaked in the first quarter of 2015 at 453 projects/79,431 rooms in preparations for the Olympic Games and now stands at 161 projects/26,877 rooms.

Together both countries account for 50% of the total pipeline. Colombia follows with 46 projects/7,727 rooms, then Peru with 46 projects/6,351 rooms. The Dominican Republic, which continues to flourish, is at an all-time high with 34 projects/11,226 rooms, a 48% increase in projects, YOY.

Cities in Latin America with the largest pipelines include Lima, Peru with 32 projects/4,889 rooms; Mexico City, Mexico with 25 projects/4,309 rooms; Cancun, Mexico with 19 projects/6,379 rooms; Sao Paulo, Brazil with 17 projects/2,864 rooms; and Cartagena, Colombia with 15 projects/2,797 rooms. The fast-growing markets of Lima, Peru and Cartagena, Colombia currently have pipelines of 58% and 46% of their existing census.

Top hotel franchise companies in Latin America’s construction pipeline are: AccorHotels with 112 projects/15,231 rooms, Marriott International with 102 projects/16,356 rooms, Hilton Worldwide at a record high of 80 projects/11,904 rooms, and InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) with 52 projects/6,525 rooms. These four companies are responsible for 48% of the projects in the total construction pipeline.

The top brands in the pipeline are AccorHotel’s Ibis brands with 73 projects/9,408 rooms, IHG’s Holiday Inn Express with 20 projects/2,403 rooms, Hampton by Hilton with 20 projects/2,368 rooms and Hilton Garden Inn with 19 projects/2,763 rooms. These are followed by Marriott’s Fairfield Inn with 15 projects/2,285 rooms and Residence Inn at an all-time high of 10 projects/1,442 rooms.